Job Description:

Salary Commensurate with Experience

This is a legal support position responsible for performing a variety of legal and administrative duties in support of a team of attorneys. The position requires specialized knowledge of legal documents and legal processes. An employee in this class must have experience working in a legal office environment and be able to handle a variety of different situations and/or tasks ranging from non-standard to routine. This position independently plans and carries out assignments in support of the objectives of the Office of the General Counsel.

This position has full responsibility to assure that work quality, processes, and conformity to standard operating procedures are met. Guidelines and procedures are available and generally applicable; however, work in this class requires extensive knowledge of the organization and operations of the Housing Opportunities Commission as well as experience to handle assignments not covered by established procedures. Assigned duties require that the employee be able to resolve difficult problems and situations through the collecting, examining, and analyzing information, and subsequent appropriate action. The work performed in this position has a substantial impact on the work of the Office of the General Counsel in terms of accuracy, coordination, and implementation of the directives of the office.

Paralegal support duties and responsibilities comprise approximately 70% of the work and include: drafting and reviewing legal documents (such as letters, contracts, leases, deeds, deeds of trust, memoranda of understanding, letters of intent, entity formation/dissolution documents, and other real estate transactional documents); reviewing title documents, surveys, and UCC and litigation searches; assisting in real estate closings, including finalizing and delivering closing documents and completing closing binders; assisting with necessary legal research; preparing and revising resolutions for Commission action; submitting legal documents to various courts, title companies, or other third parties in a timely manner; and providing general paralegal support.

Administrative support duties and responsibilities comprise approximately 30% of the work and include: reviewing outgoing documents to check for completeness, format, typos; revising documents according to instructions; submitting expenses; assisting with monthly budget compliance requirements; coordinating payment of vendor invoices; creating, revising, and redacting documents using Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Adobe; coordinating and scheduling meetings; assisting in reviewing and responding to Maryland Public Information Act requests; screening incoming correspondence for subject matter; and assisting with managing all legal department expenses.

The employee works in compliance with these procedures, referring unusual situations to an attorney for resolution. The complexity of this work is marked by assignments involving a variety of processes and methods, complying with numerous deadlines, and handling spontaneous requests while continuing to meet deadlines. Actions to be taken differ depending upon the source of information and/or the subject matter.

Personal contacts include all levels of HOC staff, court personnel, outside counsel, HOC Commissioners, the leadership of outside agencies, and business organizations, clients, landlords, and the community at large. These contacts are generally for the purpose of receiving and exchanging information/directives, usually of a critically sensitive nature, facilitating actions that may affect agency-wide programs, coordinating information and schedules, setting up meetings, and communicating information. The work environment is in the normal office setting but, due to extensive traffic and accessibility to staff or public, stressful situations can occur. Work is primarily sedentary in nature.

The opportunity for training to engage in more complex assignments may be offered.

Preferred Skills:

• Experience: Three years of legal support experience.
• Education: Bachelor’s Degree.

• Requires knowledge of legal terminology, procedures, forms, and documents.
• Requires experience with standard legal office practices and procedures.
• Must have substantial experience with Microsoft Office Suite and Google.
• Must be able to follow directions, organize assignments, and to work independently in the absence of specific instructions.
• Must have excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Ability to exercise good judgment, courtesy, and tact in receiving office callers and in making proper disposition of problems.
• Ability to manage confidential files and records.
• Desire to learn and handle more complex work over time, as appropriate.
• Experience with Yardi preferred.